Impact and vibration resistant article carrier

ABSTRACT

A collapsible, aesthetically pleasing, impact-protective sleeve for fragile articles having as a primary structural component molded foam panels having integrally molded pillars on an exterior surface of the sleeve, on an interior surface of the sleeve, or on both the exterior and interior surfaces of the sleeve. The sleeve may comprise one or more molded foam body panels, arranged in the shape of a cylinder, or other shape. Molded foam top and bottom panels may include features that are configured to interact with top and bottom portions of a fragile article for additional protection.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to protective article carriers, and more particularly to a carrier for bottles and other containers that protects such container against damage from impact and or vibration, is adaptable to multiple container sizes, and is collapsible for easy transport and storage when not in use.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Protective covers and carriers for fragile articles, such as bottles, are known in the art. Some such covers may include, for instance, inflatable bags that when inflated provide one or more air pockets around the article. Unfortunately, however, such inflatable bags are typically not easy to use, are bulky in appearance, and are unsuitable for storage in a cooler. Likewise, tote bags made of various materials, including neoprene, have been provided, and while they may provide a more stylish appearance, they typically provide minimal impact protection for the fragile article, and should the article break, typically do nothing to contain the breakage.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a protective sleeve for fragile articles, and more particularly to a collapsible, aesthetically pleasing, impact-protective sleeve for fragile articles, which protective sleeve may be optionally adapted for submersion in a cooler or fluid-filled container without wetting the article.

According to embodiments of the invention, a primary structural component of the protective sleeve is molded foam panels having pillars integrally molded thereon. According to various embodiments, the molded foam pillars may be present on an exterior-facing surface of the molded foam panels, on an interior-facing surface of the molded foam panels, or on both the exterior-facing and interior-facing surfaces of the molded foam panels.

According to alternative embodiments of the invention, the molded foam panels comprise open cell, microcellular polyurethane foam molded to and between two layers of thin polymer film. The methods for manufacturing such molded foams are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,827,704, and U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 11/644,266, 12/423,174, 13/005,893, and 13/008,471, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein in their entirety.

According to an embodiment of the invention, one or both of the polymer films may be printed prior to molding.

According to one embodiment of the invention, a protective sleeve may comprise four molded foam body panels, including two upper body panels, and two lower body panels, collectively arranged in the shape of a cylinder. According to various embodiments of the invention, the molded foam upper and lower body panels may have square or rectangular shapes, or modified square or rectangular shapes, in which one or more sides of a generally square or rectangular shape is formed into one or more curves.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, each upper body panel may be connected to an adjacent lower body panel via one or more intervening lengths of fabric. According to this embodiment, each connected set of upper and lower body panels may together form a side body panel. According to a further embodiment, each side body panel may be connected to the other side body panel by one or more intervening lengths of fabric.

According to preferred embodiments of the invention, a protective sleeve of the invention may include top and bottom molded foam panels.

According to more preferred embodiments of the invention, a protective sleeve of the invention may have a bottom molded foam panel that includes a hub portion on the interior surface of said bottom panel adapted to fit into a concave portion of the bottom of a wine bottle, for example. According to alternative embodiments of the invention, the hub portion may be an integrally molded portion of the bottom panel, or it may be separately molded and adhered or otherwise fixed to the interior surface of the bottom panel.

According to other more preferred embodiments of the invention, a protective sleeve of the invention may have a top molded foam panel that includes an annular-shaped cup portion on the interior surface of said top panel adapted to receive a narrower neck portion at the top of a wine bottle, for example. According to alternative embodiments of the invention, the annular-shaped cup portion may be an integrally molded portion of the top panel, or it may be separately molded and adhered or otherwise fixed to the interior surface of the top panel.

According to alternative embodiments of the invention, a protective sleeve of the invention may include a layer of fabric covering all or a portion of the exterior surface and/or the interior surface of the molded foam panels. According to other embodiments of the invention, a protective sleeve of the invention may consist essentially of one or more molded foam panels.

According to further embodiments of the invention, a protective article of the invention may include a single molded foam body panel and a circular bottom panel, where opposite longitudinal sides of the single molded foam body panel are attached to one-another to form the body of the protective article, having a cross-section generally in the shape of a circle, oval or teardrop. According to alternative embodiments, one longitudinal side of the article may overlap the other longitudinal side of the article during attachment. According to further embodiments of the invention, the molded foam bottom panel may be in the shape of an oval, teardrop, or other shape.

According to another embodiment of the invention, a protective article of the invention may be made of two body panels, e.g., a front body panel and a rear body panel, and a circular molded foam bottom panel. According to this embodiment, the longitudinal ends of the front and rear body panels are connected to one-another to form a sleeve having a generally circular or oval cross-section, and the bottom edges of the front and rear body panels are connected to opposite sides of the circular bottom panel. According to yet another embodiment of the invention, the bottom panel may be in the form of a circle with rectangular flanking extensions.

According to another embodiment of the invention, a protective article of the invention may be made of three rectangular molded foam body panels and a triangular molded foam bottom panel. According to this embodiment, the three rectangular body panels are connected to one another to form an article having a cross-section generally in the shape of a triangle. The bottoms of each of the three rectangular body panels are attached to a respective side of the triangular shaped bottom panel. According to a further embodiment of the invention, the article may have a triangular shaped molded foam top panel attached to the opposite ends of each of the three rectangular body panels, where access to the interior of the article is through a closeable opening between two adjacent body panels.

According to another embodiment, a protective article of the invention may be made of a molded foam bottom panel having a geometric shape of a predetermined number of sides, each side attached to a bottom edge of a molded foam side body panel. According to an embodiment of the invention, the number of molded foam side body panels equals the number of sides on the geometric shape of the bottom panel.

According to embodiments of the invention, the thickness of the molded foam panels is at least 0.375 inches to protect glass products.

According to embodiments of the invention, the thickness of the molded foam panels is no greater than 0.845 inches.

According to embodiments of the invention, the minimum radius on the transition points between surfaces on the pillars, or between the pillars and the base surface of the molded foam panels is at least 0.93 inches.

According to embodiments of the invention, the height of the pillars does not exceed 2× the thickness/width of the pillars.

According to embodiments of the invention, the top and bottom laminate sheets, e.g., the thin films molded to the foam material, may be transparent or opaque.

According to embodiments of the invention, the patterns printed on the top or bottom laminate sheets are deformed during the molding process.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a fragile article carrier according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a section view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a fragile article carrier according to a second embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4 is an illustration of a foam panel that may be used to assemble a fragile article carrier according to the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is an illustration of the assembly parts that may be used to assemble a fragile article carrier according to the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 3.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a fragile article carrier according to another embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a fragile article carrier according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a partial perspective top view of a fragile article carrier according to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 6 and 7.

FIG. 9 is a close up perspective view of the bottom portion of a fragile article carrier according to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 6 through 9.

FIG. 10 a is an illustration of one embodiment of the molded foam body panels that may be assembled to make the fragile article carrier shown in FIGS. 6 through 9.

FIG. 10 b is an illustration of dimensions of molded foam panels that may be assembled to make the fragile article carrier shown in FIGS. 6 through 9.

FIG. 10 c is another illustration of dimensions of molded foam panels that may be assembled to make the fragile article carrier shown in FIGS. 6 through 9.

FIG. 11 a is an illustration of one embodiment of a single integral molded foam panel that may be assembled to make the fragile article carrier shown in FIGS. 6 through 9.

FIG. 11 b is an illustration of dimensions of a single integral molded foam panel that may be assembled to make the fragile article carrier shown in FIGS. 6 through 9.

FIG. 11 c is a side view illustration of one embodiment of a single integral molded foam panel that may be assembled to make the fragile article carrier shown in FIGS. 6 through 9.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The following description is of particular embodiments of the invention, set out to enable one to practice an implementation of the invention, and is not intended to limit the preferred embodiment, but to serve as a particular example thereof. Those skilled in the art should appreciate that they may readily use the concepts and specific embodiments disclosed herein as a basis for modifying or designing other articles and systems for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention. Those skilled in the art should also realize that such equivalent assemblies do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention in its broadest form.

As shown in the perspective view of FIG. 1 and the cross-sectional view of FIG. 2, a flexible sleeve 100 (shown generally at 100) is provided in the form of an elongate, generally cylindrical sleeve, a first end cap 102 at a first end of sleeve 100, and a second end cap 104 at a second end of sleeve 100. Sleeve 100 is shaped to receive an elongate container therein, such as a wine bottle (not shown) having a wide base and a thinner neck portion. Of course, protective sleeve 100 is suitable for protectively carrying containers other than wine bottles, and may thus serve as a protective sleeve useful for transport of any liquid or similar material of value that is held in a fragile, elongate container. In order to properly position such a container, a centrally positioned, hollow cup 106 is provided on an interior side of first end cap 102, which cup is configured to receive the neck end of the bottle or other container. As shown in FIG. 2, cup 106 preferably has a tapered exterior wall configured to prevent flexion in the neck of the bottle in the event of an impact. Likewise, a centrally positioned hub 108 is preferably provided on an interior side of second end cap 104, which hub is configured to sit within a hollowed portion at the bottom of the wide base of the bottle or other container. Either one or both of end caps 102 and 104 may be removably attached to sleeve 100, as discussed in greater detail below. As a result, a bottle or other container may be removably placed in and removed from sleeve 100 by removing one of the end caps, inserting the bottle or other container into sleeve 100, and then replacing the end cap to close the sleeve 100 for transport.

In order to provide shock protection for the bottle, sleeve 100 is preferably comprised primarily of an impact resistant material. In certain embodiments, such impact resistant material may comprise relatively low viscosity or low durometer polymeric materials such as polymeric gel materials, and more particularly viscoelastic polymeric materials or “gels” as described in copending and commonly owned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/423,174 and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/102,859, the specifications of which are incorporated herein in their entireties. In other embodiments, such impact resistant material may comprises rate dependent foams, such as those available from Rogers Corporation under the brand names PORON® and PORON XRD®, both of which are open cell, microcellular polyurethane foams, as further described in U.S. patent Application Ser. No. 13/271,594, the specification of which is incorporated herein in its entirety.

As shown in FIG. 1 and in the detailed perspective view of FIG. 3, the exterior side of the foam material that comprises sleeve 100 is formed with pillars 110, and more preferably hexagonal pillars, which allow flexing in multiple directions so as to disperse impact and vibration applied to sleeve 100. Each of end caps 102 and 104 may optionally also include such pillars 110 on their exterior faces to maximize impact and vibration resistance of sleeve 100.

In addition to such foam material, and again with reference to FIGS. 1 and 3, sleeve 100 also includes sections of stretchable fabric material, including one or more longitudinal stretch fabric sections 112 that extend along the length of sleeve 100, and one or more circumferential stretch fabric sections 114 that extend around the circumference of sleeve 100. Such sections of stretch fabric material provide protective sleeve 100 with both variable length and variable diameter, allowing protective sleeve 100 to be used to protect bottles or other containers of varying sizes. Stretch fabric sections 114 also ease assembly of the sleeve (as further detailed below), and break up the visual profile of the sleeve, rendering it more aesthetically pleasing. Thus, sleeve 100 is preferably dimensioned so as to have a minimal unstretched length and diameter that is sized no larger than the smallest size bottle or other container that is desired be protected, and may be sized smaller than such smallest size bottle, thus allowing such small bottle to fit within the sleeve 100 and properly engage both end caps 102 and 104 when positioned within the sleeve. When larger bottles are then placed within sleeve 100, it may stretch through both its length and diameter to receive larger sized bottles, up to the elasticity limits of the stretch fabric portions 112 and 114. Stretch fabric sections 112 and 114 are preferably formed of ripstop fabric to provide abrasion resistance for sections 112 and 114 of sleeve 100.

More particularly, and with reference now to FIGS. 4 and 5, sleeve 100 may be formed of multiple, and preferably 4, rectangular body panels 120, each comprising a rectangular panel 122 of hexagon foam (as described above) that is preferably ⅜ inches thick, and that preferably has a length dimension of approximately 5 inches and a width dimension of approximately 3½ inches. A border 124 of fabric sewing material, preferably approximately ½ inch in width and ⅛ inch in thickness, is attached to edges of rectangular panel 122 for sewing, gluing, laminating, or otherwise joining panels to adjacent sections of stretch fabric. More particularly, border 124 preferably extends around a first side 125, a perpendicular side 126, and a second side 127 of rectangular panel 122. As shown in FIG. 5, each body panel 120 is to be joined to adjacent sections of stretch fabric material sections 112 and 114 along each body panel 120′s side edges and one perpendicular edge, and may be attached to such stretch fabric material sections 112 and 114 by sewing, gluing, laminating, or otherwise fastening them to one another.

In a particularly preferred embodiment, the dimensions of panels 122, and thus of fully assembled sleeve 100, are optimally configured so as to allow sleeve 100 to contain a bottle having a diameter of approximately 2.7 inches to approximately 3.5 inches, and a height of approximately 11.5 inches to approximately 13 inches.

In some embodiments, stretch fabric sections 112 and 114 may not be included. In this case, the flexibility of the impact resistant material that comprises foam panels 120 may be sufficient to receive and accommodate bottles or other containers of varying sizes by stretching the material along the length and diameter of the sleeve when used with larger bottles.

Hollow cup 106 may be sewn, glued, laminated, or otherwise fastened to end cap 120, and hub 108 may be sewn, glued, laminated, or otherwise fastened to end cap 104. Each end cap is then preferably removable attached to sleeve 100 through the use of clip bands 130. More particularly, clip bands 130 are preferably glued, sewn, or otherwise affixed to rectangular panels 122 at clip band sewing flanges 132, each of which is preferably 2 inches tall and ⅜ inches wide, and which are permanently affixed to rectangular panels 122. Each clip band 130 is then attached to either end cap 102 or end cap 104. In order to allow for the removal of end cap 102 and/or end cap 104, clip bands 130 may be sufficiently flexible so as simply allow a user to temporarily displace one of the end caps from the end of sleeve 100 and, once a bottle or other container has been inserted in or removed from the sleeve 100, replace the end cap, allowing the tension in clip bands 130 to hold the end cap in place. Alternatively, select ones of clip bands 130 may be removably attached to its respective end cap, such as by use of hook and loop fastening material, snaps, or other similarly configured connectors, whereby detaching such removable portions of clip bands 130 from its respective end cap will allow displacement of at least that portion of the end cap from sleeve 100, again allowing insertion of a bottle into sleeve 100 or removal of a bottle therefrom. Once the bottle is so inserted or removed, the end cap may be replaced and clip bands 130 reattached to such end cap to hold it in place on sleeve 100.

Preferably, and as shown in FIG. 5, end caps 102 and 104 are approximately ½ inch thick, making them slightly thicker than foam panels 120. Such added thickness for end panels 102 and 104 is beneficial so as to provide added protection against impacts, as the end portions of sleeve 100 are the most likely regions to be impacted. Moreover, a minimum thickness of ½ inch is preferable to ensure adequate structure to receive snaps or other connectors for holding end caps 102 and 104 on sleeve 100.

While the foregoing assembly comprises a generally cylindrical form, it is of note that when a bottle or other container is not positioned within sleeve 100 and end caps 102 and 104 are removed therefrom, the entirety of the assembly is collapsible into a generally flat structure having a thickness no greater than the thickness of two body panels 120. Thus, such sleeve is capable of providing significant impact and vibration resistance when a bottle or other container is positioned within sleeve 100, but likewise may be easily collapsed into an easily transportable package when not in use.

In order to keep sleeve 100 waterproof, a protective waterproof film or other treatment is applied to foam panels 120 using such waterproofing materials as are readily available and known to those skilled in the art. Similarly, stretch fabric portions 112 and 114 may likewise be treated with a protective, waterproof film or other waterproofing treatment as are readily available and known to those skilled in the art.

In an alternative embodiment, several of the above-described components may be provided in the form of a case configured for transporting multiple bottles or other containers while providing impact and vibration resistance. More particularly, a generally rectangular box may be provided as an outer container sized to fit multiple bottles or other containers. In this embodiment, body panels 120 may be sandwiched between and affixed to an exterior, preferably vinyl layer and an interior, preferably fabric layer to form a rectangular box, each side of which includes a shock and vibration resistant body panel 120 to provide protection for the contents of the box. A plurality of hollow cups 106 and aligned hubs 108 may, either alone or with end cap assemblies similar in configuration to end caps 102 and 104, be positioned along an interior side of the top of the box and an interior side of the bottom of the box, thus forming pairs each of which may position a bottle or other container positioned within the box. Optionally, the plurality of hollow cups 106 and aligned hubs 108 may be removable attached to the interior surfaces of the box, such as by hook and loop fastening materials, snaps, or similarly configured connectors. Moreover, so as to further protect the plurality of bottles or other containers so positioned within the box, accordion inserts may also be provided to separate the bottles from one another. In that case, the accordion inserts are preferably formed of the same hexagonal foam used for inserts 120, thus providing further impact and vibration protection to the bottles positioned within the box.

FIGS. 6 through 9 show another embodiment, having an open top and molded foam pillars on the exterior of the protective article carrier, and a fabric layer on the interior-facing surface of the molded foam panel. According to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 6 through 9, the exterior-facing surface of the molded foam is not covered by any additional layer, the molded foam material is black in color, and the molded film layer on the exterior-facing surface of the molded foam is transparent.

The embodiment shown in FIGS. 6 through 9 may be constructed using two side body molded foam panels and one molded foam bottom panel, as shown in FIGS. 10 a through 10 c, or it may be constructed using a single integrally molded foam panel including both side portions and a bottom portion. According to either embodiment, the side panels are generally rectangular in shape, and the bottom panel, whether molded separately or integrally molded with the side portions, may have the shape of a circle with rectangular flanking extensions as shown in FIGS. 10 b and 11 b.

According to alternative embodiments of the invention, the yellow portions of the body panels shown in FIG. 10 a (the interior portions having the molded pillars) may be made of molded foam, and the shaded/gray border portions of the body panels shown in FIG. 10 a may be made of stretchable fabric. According to another embodiment, the entirety of the body panels illustrated in FIG. 10 a may be made of molded foam.

Having now fully set forth the preferred embodiments and certain modifications of the concept underlying the present invention, various other embodiments as well as certain variations and modifications of the embodiments herein shown and described will obviously occur to those skilled in the art upon becoming familiar with said underlying concept. It should be understood, therefore, that the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically set forth herein. 

1. A protective bottle carrier comprising molded foam panels having pillars integrally molded thereon, said molded foam panels comprising open cell microcellular polyurethane foam molded to and between layers of thin polymer film, wherein the molded foam pillars are present on an exterior-facing surface of the molded foam panels, on an interior-facing surface of the molded foam panels, or on both the exterior-facing and interior-facing surfaces of the molded foam panels.
 2. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said polymer films bears printing applied prior to molding.
 3. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 1, comprising four molded foam body panels, including two upper body panels, and two lower body panels, collectively arranged in the shape of a cylinder.
 4. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 3, further comprising a molded foam bottom panel.
 5. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 4, further comprising a molded foam hub portion on the interior surface of said bottom panel adapted to fit into a concave portion of a wine bottle bottom.
 6. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 1, further comprising a molded foam top panel.
 7. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 6, further comprising an annular-shaped cup portion on the interior surface of said top panel adapted to receive a narrower neck portion at the top of a wine bottle.
 8. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 3, wherein each upper body panel is connected to an adjacent lower body panel via one or more intervening lengths of fabric and wherein each connected set of upper and lower body panels together form a side body panel, and where each side body panel is connected to the other side body panel by one or more intervening lengths of fabric.
 9. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 1, further comprising a layer of fabric covering all or a portion of the exterior surface and/or the interior surface of the molded foam panels.
 10. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 1 comprising a single molded foam body panel and a circular bottom panel, where opposite longitudinal sides of the single molded foam body panel are attached to one-another to form the body of the protective article, having a cross-section generally in the shape of a circle, oval or teardrop.
 11. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 1, wherein one longitudinal side of the single molded foam body panel may overlap the other longitudinal side of during attachment.
 12. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 4, wherein the molded foam bottom panel is in the shape of an oval or a teardrop.
 13. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 1, comprising a single molded foam front body panel and single molded foam rear body panel, and a molded foam bottom panel, wherein longitudinal sides of the front and rear body panels are connected to one-another to form a sleeve having a generally circular or oval cross-section, and the bottom edges of the front and rear body panels are connected to opposite sides of a molded foam bottom panel.
 14. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 13, wherein the molded foam bottom panel is circular.
 15. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 13, wherein the molded foam bottom panel is in the shape of a circle with rectangular flanking extensions.
 16. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 13 having an open top.
 17. A protective bottle carrier according to claim 1 comprising a molded foam bottom panel having a geometric shape of a predetermined number of sides, each side attached to a bottom edge of a molded foam side body panel, wherein the number of molded foam side body panels equals the number of sides on the geometric shape of the bottom panel. 